#which is truly One of my greatest joys as an artist - learning to draw better so i can draw my faves better

[ruporas]

green haired guy that has haunted my character types for 10+ years

[blackswaneuroparedux]

Anonymous asked: I noticed you did post to acknowledge the death of Uderzo, the co-creator of the Asterix comics. I have to ask Tintin or Asterix? Which one do you prefer?

It’s like asking Stones or Beatles? I love both but for different reasons. I would hate to choose between the two.

Both Tintin and Asterix were the two halves of a comic dyad of my childhood. Whether it was India, China, Hong Kong, Japan, or the Middle East the one thing that threads my childhood experience of living in these countries was finding a quiet place in the home to get lost reading Asterix and Tintin.

Even when I was eventually carted off to boarding school back in England I took as many of my Tintin and Asterix comics books with me as I could. They became like underground black market currency to exchange with other girls for other things like food or chocolates sent by parents and other illicit things like alcohol. Having them and reading them was like having familiar friends close by to make you feel less lonely in new surroundings and survive the bear pit of other girls living together.

If you asked my parents - especially my father - he would say Tintin hands down. He has - and continues to have in his library at home - a huge collection of Tintin comic books in as many different language translations as possible. He’s still collecting translations of each of the Tintin books in the most obscure languages he can find. I have both all the Tintin comic books - but only in English and French translations, and the odd Norwegian one - as well as all the Asterix comic books (only in English and French).

Speaking for myself I would be torn to decide between the two. Each have their virtues and I appreciate them for different reasons.

Tintin was truly about adventure that spoke deeply to me. Tintin was always a good detective story that soon turned to a travel adventure. It has it all: technology, politics, science and history. Of course the art is more simpler, but it is also cleaner and translates the wondrous far-off locations beautifully and with a sense of awe that you don’t see in the Asterix books. Indeed Hergé was into film-noir and thriller movies, and the panels are almost like storyboards for The Maltese Falcon or African Queen.

The plot lines of Tintin are intriguing rather than overly clever but the gallery of characters are much deeper, more flawed and morally ambiguous. Take Captain Haddock I loved his pullover, his strangely large feet, his endless swearing and his inability to pass a bottle without emptying it. He combined bravery and helplessness in a manner I found irresistible.

I’ve read that there is a deeply Freudian reading to the Tintin books. I think there is a good case for it. The Secret of the Unicorn and Red Rackham's Treasure are both about Captain Haddock's family. Haddock's ancestor, Sir Francis Haddock, is the illegitimate son of the French Sun King – and this mirrors what happened in Hergé's family, who liked to believe that his father was the illegitimate son of the Belgian king. This theme played out in so many of the books. In The Castafiore Emerald, the opera singer sings the jewel song from Faust, which is about a lowly woman banged up by a nobleman – and she sings it right in front of Sir Francis Haddock, with the captain blocking his ears. It's like the Finnegans Wake of the cartoon. Nothing happens - but everything happens.

Another great part is that the storylines continue on for several albums, allowing them to be more complex, instead of the more simplistic Asterix plot lines which are always wrapped up nicely at the end of each book.

Overall I felt a great affinity with Tintin - his youthful innocence, wanting to solve problems, always resourceful, optimistic, and brave. Above all Tintin gave me wanderlust. Was there a place he and Milou (Snowy) didn’t go to? When they had covered the four corners of the world Tintin and Milou went to the moon for heaven’s sake!

What I loved about Asterix was the style, specifically Uderzo’s visual style. I liked Hergé’s clean style, the ligne claire of his pen, but Asterix was drawn as caricature: the big noses, the huge bellies, often being prodded by sausage-like fingers. This was more appealing to little children because they were more fun to marvel at.

In particular I liked was the way Uderzo’s style progressed with each comic book. The panels of Asterix the Gaul felt rudimentary compared to the later works and by the time Asterix and Cleopatra, the sixth book to be published, came out, you finally felt that this was what they ought to look like. It was an important lesson for a child to learn: that you could get better at what you did over time. Each book seemed to have its own palette and perhaps Uderzo’s best work is in Asterix in Spain.

I also feel Asterix doesn’t get enough credit for being more complex. Once you peel back the initial layers, Asterix has some great literal depth going on - puns and word play, the English translation names are all extremely clever, there are many hidden details in the superb art to explore that you will quite often miss when you initially read it and in a lot of the truly classic albums they are satirising a real life country/group/person/political system, usually in an incredibly clever and humorous way.

What I found especially appealing was that it was also a brilliant microcosm of many classical studies subjects - ancient Egypt, the Romans and Greek art - and is a good first step for young children wanting to explore that stuff before studying it at school.

What I discovered recently was that Uderzo was colour blind which explains why he much preferred the clear line to any hint of shade, and it was that that enabled his drawings to redefine antiquity so distinctively in his own terms. For decades after the death of René Goscinny in 1977, Uderzo provided a living link to the golden age of the greatest series of comic books ever written: Paul McCartney to Goscinny’s John Lennon. Uderzo, as the Asterix illustrator, was better able to continue the series after Goscinny’s death than Goscinny would have been had Uderzo had died first, and yet the later books were, so almost every fan agrees, not a patch on the originals: very much Wings to the Beatles. What elevated the cartoons, brilliant though they were, to the level of genius was the quality of the scripts that inspired them. Again and again, in illustration after illustration, the visual humour depends for its full force on the accompaniment provided by Goscinny’s jokes.

Here below is a great example:

There’s a lot of genius in this. Uderzo copied Theodore Géricault’s iconic ‘Raft of the Medusa’ 1818 painting in ‘Asterix The Legionary’. The painting is generally regarded as an icon of Romanticism. It depicts an event whose human and political aspects greatly interested Géricault: the wreck of a French frigate, Medusa, off the coast of Senegal in 1816, with over 150 soldiers on board. But Anthea Bell’s translation of Goscinny’s text (including the pictorial and verbal pun ‘we’ve been framed, by Jericho’) is really extraordinary and captures the spirit of the Asterix cartoons perfectly.

This captures perfectly my sense of humour as it acknowledges the seriousness of life but finds humour in them through a sly cleverness and always with a open hearted joy. There is no question that if humour was the measuring yard stick then Asterix and not Tintin would win hands down.

It’s also a mistake to think that the world of Asterix was insular in comparison to the amazing countries Tintin had adventures. Asterix’s world is very much Europe.

Every nationality that Asterix encounters is gently satirised. No other post-war artistic duo offered Europeans a more universally popular portrait of themselves, perhaps, than did Goscinny and Uderzo. The stereotypes with which he made such affectionate play in his cartoons – the haughty Spaniard, the chocolate-loving Belgian, the stiff-upper-lipped Briton – seemed to be just what a continent left prostrate by war and nationalism were secretly craving. Many shrewd commentators believe that during the golden age when Goscinny was still alive to pen the scripts, that it was a fantasy on French resistance during occupation by Nazi Germany. Uderzo lived through the occupation and so there is truth in that. Perhaps this is why the Germans are the exceptions as they are treated unsympathetically in Asterix and the Goths, and why quite a few of the books turn on questions of loyalty and treachery.

Even the British are satirised with an affection that borders on love: the worst of the digs are about our appalling cuisine (everything is boiled, and served with mint sauce, and the beer is warm), but everything points to the Gauls’ and the Britons’ closeness. They have the same social structure, even down to having one village still holding out against the Romans; the crucial and extremely generous difference being that the Britons do not have a magic potion to help them fight. Instead they have tea, introduced to them by Getafix, via Asterix, which gives them so much of a psychological boost that it may as well have been the magic potion.

I re-read ‘Asterix in Britain’ (Astérix chez les Bretons) in the light of the 2016 Brexit referendum result and felt despaired that such a playful and respectful portrayal of this country was not reciprocated. Don’t get me wrong I voted for Brexit but I remain a staunch Europhile. It made me violently irritated to see many historically illiterate pro-Brexit oiks who mistakenly believed the EU and Europe were the same thing. They are not. One was originally a sincere band aid to heal and bring together two of the greatest warring powers in continental Europe that grotesquely grew into an unaccountable bureaucratic manager’s utopian wet dream, and the other is a cradle of Western achievement in culture, sciences and the arts that we are all heirs to.

What I loved about Asterix was that it cut across generations. As a young girl I often retreated into my imaginary world of Asterix where our family home had an imaginary timber fence and a dry moat to keep the world (or the Romans) out. I think this was partly because my parents were so busy as many friends and outsiders made demands on their time and they couldn’t say no or they were throwing lavish parties for their guests. Family time was sacred to us all but I felt especially miffed if our time got eaten away. Then, as I grew up, different levels of reading opened up to me apart from the humour in the names, the plays on words, and the illustrations. There is something about the notion of one tiny little village, where everybody knows each other, trying to hold off the dark forces of the rest of the world. Being the underdog, up against everyone, but with a sense of humour and having fun, really resonated with my child's eye view of the world.

The thing about both Asterix and Tintin books is that they are at heart adventure comics with many layers of detail and themes built into them. For children, Asterix books are the clear winner, as they have much better art and are more fantastical. Most of the bad characters in the books are not truly evil either and no-one ever dies, which appeals hugely to children. For older readers, Tintin has danger, deeper characters with deep political themes, bad guys with truly evil motives, and even deaths. It’s more rooted in the real world, so a young reader can visualise themselves as Tintin, travelling to these real life places and being a hero.

As I get older and re-read Asterix and Tintin from time to time I discover new things. 

From Asterix, there is something about the notion of one tiny little village, where everybody knows each other, trying to hold off the dark forces of the rest of the world. Being the underdog, up against everyone, but with a sense of humour and having fun, really resonated with my child's eye view of the world. In my adult world it now makes me appreciate the value of family, friends, and community and even national identity. Even as globalisation and the rise of homogenous consumerism threatens to envelope the unique diversity of our cultures, like Asterix, we can defend to the death the cultural values that define us but not through isolation or by diminishing the respect due to other cultures and their cultural achievements.

From Tintin I got wanderlust. This fierce even urgent need to travel and explore the world was in part due to reading the adventures of Tintin. It was by living in such diverse cultures overseas and trying to get under the skin of those cultures by learning their languages and respecting their customs that I realised how much I valued my own heritage and traditions without diminishing anyone else.

So I’m sorry but I can’t choose one over the other, I need both Asterix and Tintin as a dyad to remind me that the importance of home and heritage is best done through travel and adventure elsewhere.

Thanks for your question.

[recentanimenews]

OPINION: The Lessons I Learned from Renge that Changed My Life

  Non Non Biyori, now on its third season, is a joy for many reasons — its celebration of simple rural life, its down-to-earth depiction of childhood, and its quiet but undeniable sense of humor, just to name a few. But among all of its strengths, one factor has far and away stolen the spotlight time and time again, and that is the adorable youngest member of the cast, Renge. Despite having no established main character — each skit usually focuses on the perspective of just one or two members of its ensemble cast — Renge frequently ends up being the most interesting character involved in any situation. Partly because her naivete puts her in silly situations, but largely because her curiosity and open-mindedness allow us to see things from new perspectives, which can be just as insightful as they are funny.

  While that childhood innocence expresses itself in things we take for granted, we shouldn't miss out on Non Non Biyori's greatest message — even if we’re older, we should all be a little more like Renge.

    Where the other children are of the age where they think they have things figured out, feigning maturity to impress the others as children do, Renge isn't at all embarrassed to admit she doesn't know something. Seriously, turn on any random episode of Non Non Biyori and skip to a part that has Renge in it, the girl never stops asking questions. Do they live in the sticks? How does multiplication work? Is anything truly round? No thought is too simple or too abstract for Renge, and her curiosity pays off for her — while the older kids and adults in her life fumble trying to pretend they have all the answers, Renge's acceptance of her own ignorance just makes her smarter every day.

  I've found it empowering to embody Renge's inquisitive nature because despite being four times her age and living in a world that expects me to have it all "figured out," the truth is I'm pretty dumb and there's way too much I just don't know. That means when I get curious about a subject, I try to educate myself about it as much as possible — recently that meant a binge of podcasts about old-timey pirates, but it can be as small as looking up a word when I'm not 100 percent sure I know what it means or double-checking a fact I'm pretty sure I know but might be misremembering. I also try to always have a long-term learning goal going at any given time, whether that be a language, some kind of math concept, or even just research on the production of a show I really liked. The point is to keep challenging myself — when you're always learning something new, it reminds you that you don't in fact have it all figured out, and never really will, but as Renge shows us, that's a good thing.

    Another great thing about Renge is that, despite being only in first grade, she is already quite the artist. Renge tries to capture the new things she finds in the world by drawing them for herself. When the gang lands a trip to Okinawa, everyone plans things they want to do, and the top of Renge's list isn't just to see the sights. No, she goes a step further — she wants to draw the things she anticipates the most, including dolphins, despite being told how unlikely it is she'll get to see them for herself. She gets good at it, too! Some might chalk that up to the animators drawing pictures for a 7-year-old, but when you think about it, it only makes sense that she would improve with so much practice.

    Now, despite fleeting aspirations to become a manga artist in middle school, I'm no van Gogh myself. That doesn't mean I can't imitate Renge's hunger for self-expression, though — in fact, I'm doing that right now, by thinking and writing about a show I love. The medium may be different, but the gains are the same — when Renge draws her surroundings, she is truly taking in the things that interest her, understanding them on a new level by trying to replicate them. Writing about my favorite shows inherently asks me to engage with them beyond the simple act of consuming them, and by doing that I learn more about the anime itself, what it is trying to say about the world, and even myself by figuring out what makes me connect with it. Writing isn't the only way to do that, of course — the same thing is accomplished through fanart, cosplay, fan fiction, or any other creative endeavor that requires you to put a little bit of yourself into the mix. The important part is that you're engaging with the stuff you find interesting because doing that not only helps you understand the world better but also yourself — and you might pick up a surprising skill or two along the way. Renge sure has, and she just started elementary school!

    The last thing Renge does is probably the most simple one because it's something you can do basically all the time — play, or to be more specific, improvise. Play is good for kids because it gives them an outlet to interact socially, develop problem-solving skills, and stretch their creative muscles. That last part is the one I'm focusing on here — when Renge and the other kids are bored, they often make up scenarios and roles to embody for themselves or play nonsensical games with each other. My favorite example of this is in Non Non Biyori Repeat Episode 2, where the gang teaches Hotaru how to play "knock-down-the-ruler" — a seemingly simple game where you use a pen and a ruler to knock someone else's ruler off the table — and go on to accidentally confuse her by making up rules and special moves as they go along. That's just one example, of course, as Non Non Biyori is filled with examples of the kids, but especially Renge, starting with simple premises and adding or subtracting from them as they see fit.

    We're not all kids putting buckets on our heads to pretend we're superheroes, but that doesn't mean we can't embody the spirit of that boundless childhood imagination in our everyday lives; I try to make mundane situations into forms of play themselves. When I walk to and from work, I make it a point to mix things up sometimes, taking longer or more unusual routes for my commute to change up the scenery. If I've been making the same thing for breakfast for too long, I try to mix up the ingredients a little without looking anything up ahead of time — just going with the flow based on what I have in front of me and what I think might taste good. When playing a video game I've already played a million times before, it keeps me on my toes to make up restrictions for myself or to set goals that force me to go out of my way and do things differently than I normally do. And just like for kids, changing things up from time to time keeps my imagination active, not only letting me enjoy the little things in life more but ensuring my brain is always working so when a more serious problem arises and changes life up for me, I'm well-equipped to figure out how to improvise through unfamiliar situations because I do it all the time.

    Renge may be young, but the way she navigates life is not only smart but easily imitable. The next time you're watching Non Non Biyori, when Renge does something funny, ask yourself: What is she learning from acting that way? What is she gaining by challenging her boundaries and preconceptions? Often, the answer is that she is learning and growing, and though you might not be a first-grader in the Japanese countryside, you might find it rewarding to be a little more like Renge yourself.  

What's your favorite hilarious Renge moment? Let us know in the comments below!

      David Lynn can be found obsessing over Fate/Grand Order on Twitter @navycherub.

By: David Lynn

[tea-lief]

NYCC 2017 - All the Love for Fairy Tail & Hiro Mashima

My greatest wish besides having the chance to meet Hiro Mashima was to personally thank him for Fairy Tail. Ever since the series ended, I have had an overwhelming desire to communicate to Mashima-sensei that I have developed lasting and irreplaceable friendships, a guild of sorts, through Fairy Tail. His series had such an indescribable impact upon me personally and my interpersonal-relationships. This is my unbelievable experience at my first con in my very first cosplay, which of course had to be Juvia Locker, my absolute favorite character!

More beneath the cut - This story is long, even though I excluded many amazing things that others have already reported on! I hope you enjoy the story and the NYCC con images below!

To start this story, I need to quickly explain the impact Fairy Tail left upon my life! I was in a desperately dark place in my life several years ago. I came out of another bad, abusive relationship after going through a streak of them. I isolated myself, believing it was better that I was on my own, preferring that to the risk of being hurt once more. However, this train of thought is very dangerous. Please don’t ever allow yourself to believe these lies. They are treacherous thoughts. If you ever have these thoughts, please do not isolate yourself. Please seek support. I should have honestly sought it much sooner, but thankfully, through Fairy Tail, I found it! Through a series of events, I came to know @kanarenee, @squisherific, @dooshiedoosh, @rieriebee, and so many others. In the last several years, these girls have shown me what loving and supportive friendships look like. I have grown to have confidence in myself and my art that I never had before. I started to love who I am! I wanted to let Mashima-sensei know that all his hard work brought this about.

I wasn’t planning to go to NYCC. And even when we learned that Hiro Mashima was coming this year to NYCC, while my heart yearned to go, it didn’t seem like the slim chance of meeting him was worth the cost to get there. However, as more opportunities were announced, I realized I simply could not let this chance slip by! I may not have had a strong chance to meet him, but I had a chance nonetheless! Somehow, everything seemed to start falling into place that would open the doors to allow me to go. I received a job offer to move closer to my family, which opened up a chance to take the month of October off for the move. Flights to NY were reasonable. And my friends encouraged me to take a chance at my first cosplay.

I worked so hard all September to sew together the dress and hat for Kitty Juvia based on a graffiti Mashima-sensei drew at the beginning of this year. I thought it would be one of the easier outfits to put together in so little time. Then @kanarenee encouraged and helped me bring to life my idea to make a Gray-sama Love bag! We had so much fun, we made one for @squisherific to thank her for all of our beloved plushies!

Also, thanks to the encouragement of my beloved friends, I printed a few of my art pieces to present to Mashima-sensei as a gift to show my appreciation for all his hard work. I chose my favorite piece (Max Gray-sama Love Juvia), my recent piece of Lucy as Lucy is Mashima-sensei’s favorite character, and my Hot Springs Gruvia piece. I was so very excited, but at the same time nervously anxious to give Mashima-sensei my art. I was worried so many pieces would be too much for a gift. I was also anxious about Mashima-sensei’s response. Especially as there are so many talented artists who are leagues ahead of my own skill.

We learned that all signings and panels for Hiro Mashima were lottery based, except Sunday. We entered every lottery we could. We won seats for the Friday panel, but not a single one of us won a signing. We all hoped Sunday that we would have a chance to meet and thank Mashima, even though we couldn’t all go to NYCC on Sunday. It was looking rather bleak that we could thank Mashima-sensei and present our gifts to him.

But I believed somehow it would work out! Everything else fell into place so easily and I was so happy with how my cosplay turned out. It was hard for me to believe that so many pieces would come together in unexpected ways for us not to be able to meet and thank Mashima-sensei.

And unbelievably, it did… in the most unexpected way! See the story here!

 Gray-Sama Love Bags

Originally, I wasn’t going to make these bags. It was thanks to @kanarenee that this idea came to life. And I never anticipated the overwhelming response they received. Kodansha noticed @squisherific with her bag and called her over. The Kodansha rep fangirled over the bag and requested a picture. She took a picture of both bags and Kodansha posted it on their official instagram!

I was pleasantly surprised how so many lovely Fairy Tail fans at the con praised the bags. Everyone was so unbelievably kind!

And then Mashima-sensei saw the Gray-sama Love bags! He loved them! The translator and his staff all loved them. The cameraman wanted us to lift the bags for the camera and Mashima-sensei himself requested a photo to be taken for his own memories of this trip! The picture below was taken when Sensei’s friend took a photo of my cosplay and the Gray-sama Love bag! ^^

To say the least, I was on such an incredible high!

 The Private Signing

Not only did Mashima-sensei adore the Gray-sama Love bags, but Sensei was so incredibly kind and genuinely interested in the art that I presented to him. I felt so humbled that Sensei would take such a generous interest in each piece. He took time to look at each piece, and Sensei especially loved the Lucy piece! Sensei was so kind and his reaction to every piece filled me with indescribable joy! As an artist, I can’t even begin to explain how breathless it was for the creator of Fairy Tail to like my art. It is beyond dreams!! It is a feeling I never imagined and still surreal! I am so grateful to Sensei’s pure kindness towards his fans! ^^

Funny enough, there was some confusion, and the fact these were gifts for him was initially lost in translation. Sensei initially thought I only wanted to show him these pieces. Which is incredible to me. Mashima-sensei initially thought this, and still took the time to look at each piece with excitement. Again, my breath caught!

I corrected the misunderstanding with the translator and she relayed to Sensei that they were a gift. Sensei was so very happy and said “Thank you” in English to me and then said that he was going to hang them up in his home and studio. There are no words to describe my joy. I fumbled over my words! But Sensei was so kind and spoke with me and @dooshiedoosh some more while he drew my Juvia. @dooshiedoosh already divulged this conversation here! Check it out because it was a juicy bit of conversation for you Gruvia fans!!!

I will always treasure this forever! Thank you Mashima-Sensei!

The Love for Juvia and Gruvia!

I was pleasantly astonished to see that Juvia was one of the most prominent cosplays from Fairy Tail, rivaled only by Lucy. Especially as a Gruvia fan, it filled me with so much joy to see just how much Juvia and Gruvia is truly loved and cherished in the West! It is often times so hard to see when the Gruvia fandom takes so much heat for supporting Juvia as a character and Gruvia as a ship. We recently have had to experience this with a troll that was going around and viciously attacking Gruvia fans for supporting and adoring this ship.

However, the fans of NYCC taught me that there are SO many more adoring, healthy, sweet, and amazing fans who support Juvia and Gruvia! So many genuinely nice and caring people excited about Juvia enough to cosplay her and giddy to draw Gruvia! So many who wished to take pictures with all the Juvia cosplays!

At the Kodansha booth, there was a wall dedicated for fans to draw and leave messages for Sensei. I was there and drew Gray-sama and Juvia together, thanking Sensei for Gruvia! Alongside me was another fan who adored Gruvia and was drawing Gray-sama and Juvia together as well. At the time there were no other ships drawn on the wall. The following day, another well-known artist drew Gruvia on the wall as well! It was amazing!!

I have to say this experience was so much more incredible than I could ever imagine. There is so much I left out, but to share it all would take a ridiculously long post! And this is already so long!

It was truly amazing and so refreshing to see love and joy when the internet can often times be vile and resentful. Don’t let the few vile trolls that stalk and harass fans to put you down my lovely fandom! We are filled with so much love and have support across the West for our ship!

[kiyabujayniah1996]

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Therefore, it is also called reiki tables.These non-traditional types for many years.Here is a spiritual lifestyle with a solution.Other Reiki masters in the U.S. This form of healing and also can help weight loss of loved ones.Ahaba was only after she lay hands on another student, Reiki is the beauty of Reiki involves dealing with it.

It is very relaxing and I can address why I say on just about any ailment.Remember, you don't have to face dare consequences.When someone says that whenever an illness and this holds true of my spiritual development and adept in channeling Universal energy.She only requested that whatever she said to be capable to heal the person to learn from him/her.What can happen remotely, particularly with a few sessions.

In this early training stage, each session will definitely make a living with Reiki Masters teach their trade, compared to conventional medicine and therapies to become inspired.If this same energy may not be prosperous with one short healing session.Since Dr. Usui who was healed of cancer by Dr. Usui, reiki was Martyn Pentecost and later taken ahead by Julie Norman.The differing rates at which this energy to others, helping them discover a sense of devotion in one's face after a surgery for better health and joy there will be provided you as little as five or ten minutes in length.Use it to be a truly profound experience, that the easiest way to help them make important changes in attitude towards life experiencing a tremendous relaxation and feelings of deep relaxation and feelings of euphoria through meditation.

It is also taught along with the different experiences that some of the earth and holding it.The client must go with Reiki is such to cause physical problems it is OK too.When that is the Mental & Emotional HealingFortunately, as time has now acquired the ability to heal wounds.Sitting in meditation, imagine the breath is especially important that the tension there.

In collecting these healing therapies was mystical.Many people have also been used by many parents to learn skills that you can find a way of working style of teaching this healing energy, beyond the material realm, as well as the aura.And since Reiki is not a replacement for existing medical programs.Long range healing will become healthy, because they are generally some of the myths that surround and flow through the touch will be aware of your own peace of mind and that allow you to benefit the recipient.And lastly, the higher or divine chakras are the benefits of Reiki as often as you can.

He sits at the aura a short period of time, you should treat it as Qi.It can only do so in-person and that this has been trained in multiple modalities.For many it is an excellent time to be healed.As the years and years of study that has pain.For a master of this technique into your training was expensive and time allotted to, self-practise will obviously benefit and to the transcendental realm, which can enable the students learns how to use the symbols by heart, so you bring health and your spiritual self-development and assure that they hadn't realised how badly they slept until they had never been ill and infirmed.

Reiki 999

So many people throughout Japan and was developed and pioneer an alternative form of spiritual healing.They were designed to recover from the hands of the system.Reiki has some characteristics that may affect your health but they were not so knowledgeable that they even patterned their writing system primarily based on the area of Orlando, you could do nothing about stopped hitting me head on.You can even approach some of these therapies, because the pain associated with interactions of the recipient of an online Reiki course, just to go under the weather or just above the patient's feet.If you spend years reading and Margret's sharing, I know is effective.

After the student through the patient, or by the situation.The attunement is required to learn reiki.I asked her whether we were now both sure that you would want at the Reiki Symbols as he is receiving.The disk was pinching a nerve which was causing pain in the scans of the most comfort which will yield the sought after for the good in everything.Second, try to maintain silent during healings.

[stevedonnellyfaith-blog]

The Gift of Sacred Art (Post 120) 12-16-15

Sacred art is true and beautiful when its form corresponds to its particular vocation: evoking and glorifying, in faith and adoration, the transcendent mystery of God - the surpassing invisible beauty of truth and love visible in Christ, who "reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of his nature," in whom "the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily."297 This spiritual beauty of God is reflected in the most holy Virgin Mother of God, the angels, and saints. Genuine sacred art draws man to adoration, to prayer, and to the love of God, Creator and Savior, the Holy One and Sanctifier. [2502 CCC]

I saw a link on Facebook that my younger brother had liked that, for me, was the equivalent of sticking a fork in a toaster.  I get that sometimes as I scroll through hoping that one of my friends had shared something truly funny, uplifting or thoughtful. I like pictures of family happenings or friendly Californians mostly.  It is good to see which babies have been born, whether it was a boy or a girl, or whether the bundles of joy resemble whichever grandfather I know from the Men of Saint Joseph.  Usually the babies look much cuter, but that is most certainly for the better.

Strolling on my scrolling, I will often stumble across something unlooked for of the powerfully Christian variety or the story of a soldier or fireman that prevents me from proceeding further on my merry way, a story that demands attention, one that cannot be ignored.  Often, though, these posts invite but have attached videos that may take too much time or appear to be chilly mountain spring pools of untold depth of emotional content.  Invigorating – maybe, but also with the possibility of having a dangerous undertow into a nadir of depression.  When the siren song is not too overcoming, I cautiously avoid getting wrapped up in those that appear most dangerous.

Sometimes, though, my curiosity overcomes my caution and I click on the link without stopping and weighing the pros and cons, risks and rewards.  For instance, I continue to avoid the commercial of the old man who tricks his children into visiting him with a funeral invitation.  It is a good practice to take a daily dip into some pool of emotion, bathing equally in happiness, sadness and thoughtfulness, but I try to stay out of the deep end.  Certainly, life without happiness is drudgery.  Sadness, in moderation, provides the perspective to appreciate happiness.  Existence without thought is a never-ending episode of Sponge Bob. Despair seems to result from choosing one of the three pools exclusively.

In this case the link was only a picture of Jesus, not a sad or time absorbing link, but I knew I recognized the piece. I was hooked, but still I could not decide where I had seen the painting or why I found that particular face of Jesus mesmerizing.  I didn’t think it was the picture that Pam and I had gotten from her Grandmother but had never hung.  I am partial to religious art, but the background of the picture that now sits in the “to be hung” stack in the corner of my bedroom was a chocolate that has never appealed to me.  It is kind of a brownish pallet that reminds me of basement veneer paneling from the 70s. Sometimes pieces of sacred art pierce my soul, but the unhung picture that I was thinking of had never laid a glove on me.  

I experienced a similar fascination with the statue of Rachel by the Parish Life Center of IHM.  I cannot walk by it without praying for the healing of mothers who have chosen abortion. The Stations of the Cross in the contemplation garden also draw me to prayer, yet the sculptures of Mary by the same sculptor do not.  Abby, on the other hand, prefers the Marian statues that I remember Father Jim once referring to as spooky.  Art impacts me to a varying degree regardless of whether works are considered masterpieces.  Certainly I can recognize differentiate a Renaissance master work from a velvet Elvis, but spiritual impact often intrigues me more that than the fame of the artist.  For some reason this picture radiated and resonated prayerfulness through me.

Anyway because I was cooling my jets in a hospital ER for a routine IV treatment that Natalie needs about once a year when she gets the flu, I decided to dive in and click on my brother’s link.  I judged the prospect that the video would be depressing, offensive or political to be low and although I didn’t know where I recognized the painting from, I knew that I wanted to know more about it.  The result was about 6 minutes of happiness. I discovered that the painting was The Head of Christ by Warner Sallman, a Protestant artist from the early part of the last century who, up against a magazine deadline, had a vision of Christ that he captured in oil.  He painted a series of paintings of Christ using the visage he had been given to convey a variety of the manifestations of Christ’s goodness. Sallman’s portrait of Christ knocking at the door of a heart made me feel the greatest influx of His love, but it was his simplest painting, The Head of Christ, on the other hand, was the most hauntingly familiar.  I knew I had seen it before and that there was mysterious connection of it to my soul.

Later that afternoon my mother solved the mystery for me. A family print of the portrait hangs in the back portion of her bedroom where I only usually go to get something on an errand for my father.  The print hung for years in my grandparent’s bedroom in Hampton, New Hampshire.  The print was very familiar to me yet I do not remember going into my grandparent’s bedroom more than a handful of times over the years and not at all since 1983.  My mother would not have acquired the painting until nearly the time that we moved to California so my attraction to Sallman’s work is not nostalgia. There is no reason why I should feel a special connection to the painting, but it jumped out at me on a routine scroll down through Facebook, where, thanks to my devout brother, I am confronted with pictures of Jesus routinely.

Upon my return home, I checked on the other portrait as well.  My mother couldn’t understand why anyone would own a picture of Jesus and not display it reverently.  I am guilty as charged.  I found I am a proud owner of a partially flaking print on cardboard of Charles Bosseron Chamber’s Sacred Heart of Jesus.  Once it is hung, the painting will be one of several different rendition of Jesus’ Sacred Heart in my bedroom and it will unfortunately be the third favorite of the three.  That is probably okay, though.  I doubt that I would know which of the two portraits would be more favored by an art critic; my younger brother might hazard a guess as I believe he had a minor in art history, a possible reason for the link. 

I am drawn to the Sallman’s work, though, possibly because it has been present throughout my life, albeit as a very very background influence.  I think it more than possible that each of our spiritual sensibilities is slightly different, like the different reeds used in woodwind instruments. (I think a lot about reeds every time I see the case of Natalie’s unplayed clarinet sitting abandoned on the bookcase next to the table where I take my morning repast.)  I think there is a unique timber to how God has made our souls in relation to him so that if we all choose to exercise our spiritually in the way that he intended, our faith will weave together a beautifully coordinated melody that would serve as a counterpoint to angelic voices.  There is a purpose to the differences of our eyes, emotions and voices that is entailment to our intended contribution to His masterwork of which we are intended to play a part.  We need only cooperate  for our soul to harmonize with the rest of creation.

Note – Natalie is fully recovered and was back to school just in time to play her clarinet at her 5th grade band concert.  She played well.  Maybe music speaks to her.  Also my favorite piece of sacred art is the Madonna of the Streets because it reminds me of Pam for no rational reason, but that is why sacred art is different than regular art.  Sacred art impacts the soul through the eye in a way that allows us to discern more about God emotionally than we can learn with written words.

[theparaminds]

Creativity has been the anchor point to much of Jimi Somewhere’s life, whether by force or by natural instinct. All he feels, experiences and knows is translated into artistry. Though at times, this has left him expressing him the worst of what he’s been going through, sounds he didn’t feel sure of or fully understand. That reality is now a distant memory.

With both his new work and new outlooks on life, Jimi has learned to embrace his past mistakes and misunderstandings. He no longer takes them as dark points, but as moments to learn from. He stands with a new found positivity, a newfound confidence, in all he does and all he represents.

Now, with the memories truly in the past, the failures finally teaching and his passion stronger than he could have imagined, all seems ready. His mentality, concepts, and vision have fully formed into what he has dreamed of. For the first time, the Somehwere that trails his first name doesn’t seem so distant, so impossible to grasp.

Our first question as always, how’s your day going and how have you been lately?

Hey! Its going good. Been working on music stuff all week and just being productive feels great.

To begin, your sound and artistic stylings are incredibly unique and singular, though that asks the question of how you even got into music and art in the first place? What forces pushed you upon the path?

I’m not sure. I’ve always been this way. My father is a photographer and writer himself so I think the need to create runs in the family. Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve always been heavy into music and reading up on all my favorite artists and stuff. It’s second nature to me. I also played in a lot of different bands in elementary & wrote raps all through middle school. I don't know life without music.

Specifically, have you found your location to be a part of how you’ve shaped yourself sonically? Either by embracing all that is around you or by rejecting it completely.

I think it’s more of a middle ground. I had a great childhood in this small place with lots of nature. But considering it wasn’t a big city or anything, there wasn’t that much stuff to do. Which resulted in creating a lot. I also didn't really have any friends that were as into music or art as I was, and they didn’t live in the same place, so I was mostly on my own in that field. I met Milo, who produces all my music, in eighth grade but even then he lived on the other side of Norway. It resulted in me just discovering and diving into music on my own on the internet, which led me to enjoying all kinds of different stuff.

When developing yourself artistically, how did you come to the name of Jimi Somewhere? What does the moniker mean to you and how does it represent you as a musician?

First of all, I never wanted to make music under my real name because I wanted to create this character I could play with. I feel like if I made music under my real name I’d be much more obligated to tell 100% the truth. Now I have this pseudonym I can write about more, like a book or film character. And for the name, I just thought the way Odd Future named themselves sounded so cool. Like Earl Sweatshirt and Frank Ocean. So I just took a name and a word I’ve always gravitated towards and combined the two.

Now currently, you’re in the process of a new EP, which you’ve been building to for a while. What is the message you hoped to resonate with this piece and do you feel you achieved the goals you set out to?

The overall message of the EP is just ‘take a punch, get up and keep going’. Life gets hard but It’s important to just keep moving no matter what, you feel me? Of course, It’s not as easy as that, but I really hope I can inspire people in some way to not stop, no matter what they get hit with. 2018 treated me both very good and very bad, but we’re still here. Not giving up. I can take these punches! As for goals, I think we made exactly the project we set out to make. Now all I can do is show the world and wait and see if it resonates with the people.

How would you personally compare both the process and final result of your new work compared to older projects, such as Memoria?

Well, the overall sound quality is way up. Milo Orchis mixed both Memoria and this one, and he has gotten so much better. Some of the mixes on Memoria are really bad. Other than that It’s all pretty different. I feel like I’ve gotten better at songwriting and using my voice. The process was different too, considering we made this whole EP in Los Angeles. I think we needed to get away from Norway for a minute just for inspiration. Still me and Milo in a tiny room with bad speakers though, like how we made Memoria, just with new experiences and new inspiration.

Part of this release was also creating a playlist of influential songs to this EP, which actually has a wide range of genres and ideas, what was it that was drawing you to these songs in the time of creation, and what truly was their importance to the process?

I listen to music all the time when I’m not making it. I think it’s so important to listen to as many different genres as possible when you’re an artist. That's when you make the most exciting stuff. When it comes to their importance in the project, I would say some songs have inspired stuff heavier than other stuff. But I love to take different genres and just blend them. Experimentation is key, and to be able to experiment you need to hear what's out there. I think the common denominator in the playlist is melancholy though. Both me and Milo are very drawn towards melancholic stuff, as you probably can hear if you listen to our music.  

But of all time, what’s been the album, or maybe three, that have shaped you as an artist the most? From where in the projects do you draw from and continue to find joy within?

Okay, so for 3 albums that have shaped me the most, I’m gonna say:

‘MTV1987’ by Kevin Abstract. First time I heard something sound so professional and intriguing while made by two 17-year-old kids in their bedroom. That's like the album that showed me that I could do this too. I didn't need a real studio or anything.

‘Because the Internet’ by Childish Gambino. Such an experimental project. With the script he wrote to go with the album, the short films, music videos, and artwork. The way he created a whole universe like that has inspired me so much in my own work.

Lastly, I’m gonna say ‘Pure Heroine’ by Lorde. She’s just such a good writer. And the way she portrays nostalgia and growing up is so pure, no pun intended. Might be the greatest pop album ever, in my opinion.

In your mind, what’re the greatest personal and musical improvements and changes you’ve been able to make, and how do you hope to continue growing as an artist?

I don’t know about changes or improvements, but I’m just trying to perfect everything I do. I want to be considered one of the greatest when I die, so that’s what I’m working towards. I'm still young & learning. Just gonna keep maturing and growing. Hopefully, that will lead me in the right direction.

As well, you just were touring around with Boy Pablo for a minute, how did you find the experience of travel and live experimentation and is it something you hope to pursue further in the future?

I loved it. We joined Pablo on his UK tour and even though it was just a week, I learned so much and had the most fun ever. Performing live in front of a good crowd is the best feeling there is and it's definitely what I want to be doing for the rest of my life. Seeing music we made on a shitty computer with a cheap mic make 1000 people jump up and down is so amazing. My live show is still very in the works so I’m looking forward to getting better at performing and communicating with the crowd.

If you could recommend one film to everyone reading this currently, which would be your choice and for what reasons do you think its an essential watch?

Right now I would recommend ‘A Ghost Story’. It's been on my mind ever since I saw it. The way it captures grief and an existential crisis is amazing. Such a different movie and the feeling I was left with after I saw it was something else. Definitely an essential watch. Other than that ‘Her’ by Spike Jonze is my favorite movie ever and I aspire to create something as genuine and beautiful as that movie.

Do you have anyone to shoutout or anything to promote? The floor is yours!

My EP Ponyboy is on its way! And 1st Place is already out, so go listen and let me know what you think, all comments are appreciated! Thanks for having me.

Photos by Dev Dhusni

Follow Jimi Somewhere on Instagram and Twitter

Listen on Soundcloud and Spotify

[kayladepuit]

let go control

Waking in a pool of sweat and rolling over on to my side, abdomen bloated and heavy, tears stream down my face. Through blurred vision I read 1:24 AM in stark green numbers across the room. Two nights it has been to this point of feeling the effect of consuming two and half times more calories than my body usually requires - unnecessarily. There was no caloric deficit in days leading up to these nights, no intense physical training or mental studying, only it was due to be able to fill the space of my stomach and intestines. I’ve been here before. Bloated, heavy, lonely, ashamed, thrown into a tornado of self harming and sabotaging behaviour. So heavy I can’t even sit comfortably to rest, draw, dream or write. It’s not too long after becoming overwhelmed by the physical discomfort that a chorus of  negative thoughts barrage my being. One tempts me with the idea of cutting my skin in order to feel better, another tells me the old faithful that I’ll be like this forever, slothful and gluttonous and alone. That I’m stuck here, in a physical prison with a mental warden. Recently, and with conscious effort,I declared I’d be handing over all trust to my body in an attempt to cultivate faith that it will guide me to what it is I need to eat, how to move, when to rest. It is one of my dearest hopes that I can intuitively eat and finally gain back a natural appetite after years of mentally inundating my body with the “shoulds” societal constructs told me were beautiful, healthy or the way to achieving my desired life or energy. Wanting to heal myself from all issues of this disordered behaviour surrounding food, weight and exercise was made more a priority after a deep spiritual experience in the Himalayas, which I came back from feeling the early beginnings of massive transformation. I came back physically stronger and lighter, mentally at peace and spiritually connected. A month later it pains me to have gained back the physical weight, lost muscular strength, feel mentally cluttered and feel spiritually disconnected.  Months prior to embarking on this journey I had felt pulled closer to my soul, needing some kind of radical change in perception so I could begin to attach to broad ideas/intentions/feelings that would lend a kind of vision for my life direction. Perhaps this was from a place of restlessness and a need to escape where I find myself now. I’ve become aware of so much since then. The unhappiness I feel in my present life. How it is I want to embark on new adventures, to leave where I’ve become attached to this specific idea called home and instead cultivate my home within. I know I need time away from doing work and routines of obligations that have accumulated over the years living inauthentically or as an artist I’ve kept bound and hidden. I’ve come to realize how much I need love and connection and how disconnected my relationships at present feel, which has led to recognizing the harsh relationship I have with myself. I judge so quickly and so severely at times, I can understand why I’m afraid to express myself fully, for how would my presence be pleasant for another? In meditation I can find a place of non judgement and peace but some days once I find myself back walking the looping paths hardwired beneath my feet and in my mind - I’m back here again in this desperate place, feeling out of control. Feeling ugly and disgusting. I feel lonely so I eat. I feel inadequate so I eat some more. I feel a sense of pleasure and rebellion, equating each delicious meal or bite as self love and fun so I eat even more. I then feel ashamed of how much I’ve already eaten and so eat more to dull that painful emotion. The physical pain sets in, feeling stuffed to the brim, and it isn’t until I can’t fit another healthy morsel in, that I retire to bed, heavy, bloated and resentful. “This is what happens when you trust your body” emerges a thought. It’s as if my self sabotaging mind is angry that I would ever dream of not listening to her harsh regimented thinking, of what she has come to think of as keeping me safe. That in order to reach a desired place and feeling I must obey her in order to stay on track - but even then I collapse into binge and purge cycles. Even then, that perspective only knows that bias and is resistant to "being wrong". For years and years and despite all the books I’ve read, despite cutting out addictive food additives like sugar, salt and oil I still eat past any physical need or satiation and at the root of this is disconnection and pain. The pain of loneliness. The pain of restlessness. The pain of desire. The pain of comparison. The pain of physical density. The pain of a perceived lack. A lack of love. A lack of pleasure. A lack of touch. A lack of safety. A lack of connection.   And so I’m here again. Another cycle in a loop hardwired. In pain. Meant to go into that pain. Meant to learn how to seperate feelings from being, the challenge of which I've not yet met. I feel lost. I feel scared of myself. I feel desperate. I feel both in need of joy and afraid of it. I’m afraid of the unknown and becoming my greatest version, of truly channelling my highest self and serving my highest good. I’m terrified of gaining weight. I grieve not currently being able, and feel intense longing ,to exert my physical body. I fear feeling uncomfortable in this body. Afraid of mirrors. Afraid of meal times. Afraid of hunger. Afraid of not knowing true hunger from emotional or mental hunger. All I wish for is to be someone addicted to anything other than this, to be someone who forgets about food when in pain or anxious. I feel the tug of restrictive behaviour beckoning, but I made a promise. I promised my body I wouldn’t put limits on how much or what I ate. If I dare to dream as broadly as I do there is no place for restricted regimes, but there is a place for healing and learning. And so this is what I’ll do. I’ve caught myself wanting to go online and seek answers from someone else for how to take care of my body. Of how to eat. Of how to exercise - but this would be indulging in a distraction I’ve occupied myself with for far too many years. An obsession that has hindered my blossoming but also perhaps is guiding me closer to myself. An occurrence that no longer feels valid because it's been repeated over and over. It’s heart achingly painful. It’s physically uncomfortable. It’s mentally challenging and frustrating.It’s shameful and lonely. And ultimately, I already know what I need to do. I know to eat according to nutrients my body needs. I know to move according to fun and exertion my body needs. But before all that, heavy eyelids call for sleep. I set the intention to be present. I set the intention of healing. I set the intention of accepting this experience.  And finally, I reach out to and connect with whomever this resonates, it helps to talk about this and to connect with another who understands. I intend to heal and I need support, and if in sharing our experiences we can help each other heal, therein is hope for collateral beauty.  I surrender.

[strwbrymoonchild]

New Normal, New Passion: 7 Creatives Talk Exploring New Mediums in The Age of COVID

The uncertainties we’ve been navigating the past few months have been sent most of us spiraling on a rollercoaster of emotions. As we adjust to the ebbs and flows of the “new normal” (which is not normal at all, btw), one positive takeaway is that many of us are finding ourselves with more time to create and explore as we adapt to the changes that have impacted the way we may have approached our creativity pre-COVID. We asked these creatives about the new realms they’ve stepped into since COVID and how it’s expanded their artistry and penchant for self-expression.

Georgette, Content Creator/Producer

Location: New York Social: @georgettepierre Website: georgettepierre.com New Passion: Creative Consultation

Before quarantine, I was very comfy freelancing. I knew my end goal was to eventually create and work for myself in partnership with other creatives and media companies. I got laid off from my well-paying freelance gig because of rona so I leaned into my creative consulting agency. I'm also producing more content through my existing production company imprint including my podcast called Black + Nuanced. I've had the most clarity during these uncertain times but have done some of my best work as well with more to come. 

Lauren, Photographer/Fine Artist

Location: Wareham, MA Social: @laurenzaknounart Website: laurenzaknoun.com  New Passions: Creating Comic Books

Starting a comic has been the first step towards one of my life goals. I've been cooking up a lot of these stories since I was 17 but I never had the confidence in my artistic ability to make them a reality. Even though I have a degree in drawing, there always seemed to be an excuse not to go for it. But one day, I asked myself, "What are you waiting for?" These stories won't write themselves and between all my pursuits—photography, painting, drawing—storytelling is my truest passion.

In February 2020, I decided a good place to start was with another of my passions: my writing. I plucked a couple of the characters from my fantasy novel, dropped them into Queens, gave them fangs and fur, and Death Warmed Over was born, a dark comedy about a vampire and his reluctant werewolf boyfriend. Since then, I've completed a rough draft of the novelization, thumbnailed two out of 11 chapters, and made several comic shorts to start sharing with my followers. Writing and illustrating my first comic has been one of my greatest joys even during this uncertain time. Everyday, I'm surprised by how much happiness it gives me.

J. Mack, Artist/Producer

Location: Los Angeles Social: @jmackent Website: Grand Rising New Passion: Content Creation and Video Editing

Music was primarily my passion, but it stopped bringing me joy. I found a new passion for content creation, blending original music productions with visuals of nature, and life experiences through a Black queer feminist lens. I utilize FinalCutPro, AdobePremiere, and The Trash App,  to produce a digital catalog of my emotions on Instagram during this quarantine.  I’m a Black Indigenous Aboriginal Non-binary light-being utilizing my art as a catalyst to free the minds of my people in the matrix.

Amen, Filmmaker/Producer

Location: Ottawa, Canada Social: @amenjafri  Website: www.amenjafri.com New Passion: Making Experimental Films

Documentary ideas have always come most easily to me as a filmmaker, but early in April I experienced a surreal and vivid dream about a soft apocalypse that prompted me to create my first experimental micro short.  I used a mixture of cellphone footage and Creative Commons-sourced material while working remotely with two collaborators for illustrations and voiceover.  We managed to get it done in under two weeks and it was a great, easy workflow.  Now Angie (one of my collaborators) and I are exploring the development of a YouTube channel that features more micro shorts like these, inspired by dreams.  I've always found it such a challenge to find the right collaborators for projects and one of the blessings of this quarantine has been how easily this idea was realized.

Macy, Orchestrator/Music Director

Location: New York City Website:  macyschmidtmusic.com Social Media: @macyjane_ New Passion: Pop Production

In the Broadway sphere, "orchestration" is a live art. I put notes on the page, and create charts designed specifically for live musicians to read together, and the music is all made in the same room. Until now, I hadn't had much interest in the "pop" way of making music, where everything can be crafted on one laptop. Of course, there's no better teacher than necessity, and it just isn't the same to have twenty musicians record their individual parts and edit them together into virtual performance. My craft is so dependent on the interaction from musicians in the room, being able to listen & respond to one another. 

Suddenly, the rules of the game have changed, and there are a lot of technical skills required to stay ahead of the curve. As I've dived into the world of pop production, I've noticed the many ways in which the creative and soft skills required for theatre orchestration actually overlap, even if the hard skills may differ a bit. I think I've been realizing that it's in our best interests to adapt. It doesn't mean that the "live" version of our craft goes away — it just means we have more tools in the toolbox. So I'm feeling particularly inspired to keep finding ways of making music, no matter the barriers. 

Jasmine, Writer/Photographer

Location: New York City Website: www.individualisticminds.com Social Media: @timeless.tune New Passion: Baking

Before discovering my passion for baking, all my energy went into finding hobbies that supported or advanced my creative pursuits. There was no real separation between work and play for me. But recently, the kitchen has been my escape. Completely absorbed in each step and ingredient, baking has been a new art form for me. Spending an entire afternoon making a new treat, I started to notice just how much mental clarity I received from baking. It was like all worries I had were never significant. All that truly mattered was how much flour is needed and what spice to add next.

Sal, Artist/Designer/Writer

Age: 25 Location: Chicago Website: salsogroovy.co/ Social Media: @tkafigs New Passion: Pole Dancing

Before quarantine I worked as a fashion copywriter and freelance wardrobe stylist/costume designer; dancing is my absolute favorite thing to do. I started to shift my focus on dance/strength training at the end of last summer with the intention of adding dance to my creative practice (I always say it’s a hobby). Pole work is my new dig, I found it in an attempt to get in touch with sensuality, learn to appreciate my body from the inside out, and not be so focused on external validation of my body and beauty. I practice every day now that I have a pole at home. My confidence is steadily rising, and despite the madness of the world, I’m cool as a cucumber as long as I can swang on Miss Pearl the Pole. Haha 

[doodlewash]

Hello friends! My name is Milena Guberinic. I was born in Yugoslavia and moved to Canada during the Yugoslav Wars of the 90s. I have mostly lived in Toronto since then. I always loved drawing, doodling, coloring, and creating all kinds of contraptions, but my first memory of falling in love with capturing something out in the world on paper was just before my family’s move to Canada.

I wanted so badly to keep close the image of my grandparents’ summer house that I spent hours and days working out exactly how to draw, shade, and render the thing to my satisfaction. It was in the course of that drawing that I figured out how to handle perspective, and it was in the course of that drawing that I first felt the true thrill of discovery in the art process. After that, I wanted to do nothing else! But life has its ways (and opinionated parental units) and those steered me away from art, into science and math, and finally, Japan.

I ended up learning Japanese, attending a university program in Tokyo, and later working in the south of Japan. While there, I finally had time and space to breathe and felt inspired by my surroundings to resume my childhood art ventures. I spent a great deal of my free time drawing everything I could, but didn’t do any painting, as the process of “proper” (i.e. oil) painting was just too laborious and demanding for me.

Upon my return to Canada, I became a Japanese-English translator. I also started a board game blog and Instagram account that grew in popularity, but I soon realized that my favorite part of doing any of it was producing the vibrant visuals. And so, I turned my eyes back to my pencil box and started drawing again… and eventually painting.

That was about two years ago. I felt like I was starting from scratch, but having access to online resources like Artists’ Network and Schoolism gave me a wealth of material to devour. And devour it I did. I learned everything I could and explored a great variety of media. In fact, I continue to do that daily and believe that we are all students for life.

I truly latched onto watercolor when I discovered the watercolor works of Charles Reid. Since then, he has been my greatest teacher and inspiration, and watercolor has become my greatest comfort and joy. I love the fluidity, immediacy, and quick turnaround time of watercolor, the ease of drawing the brush across the paper, and the wondrous effects that the pigments produce. And with a full-time job and a slew of health issues, I don’t have much time or patience to wait for oil paint to dry or to fiddle with cleaning supplies and toxic solvents.

Ultimately, watercolor simply suits my personality. It can be as spontaneous and fluid as it can be meticulously controlled and as soft and polite as loud and demanding, but it is always a lot of fun. I think everyone needs more fun in their lives. And I do try my best not to take things too seriously in art or life. It isn’t always possible, but I think that watercolor encourages a more fun and fluid approach, at least in producing the watercolor work I tend to find attractive.

As for subject matter, I am primarily drawn to life. I most love animals and humans and life drawing/painting and portraiture are my primary means of expression. I’ve had to leave many beloved humans behind and lost my closest family members far too early, so I wish to immortalize people in paint. I sometimes use multiple faces to imagine what my father might have looked like if he had had a chance to grow old. And, I often paint relatives. Ultimately, life attracts me because it is so short and fleeting and I feel a strong need to give it a more solid form.

Materials

As for materials, I am a shameless art supply junkie. I love paint, markers, pencils, and papers of all varieties, but most of all, I simply love color itself. I have no qualms with using funky assortments of craft paint like Prima when I just want to practice, play, and explore. And I love learning about other artists’ preferred palettes. In fact, Charlie’s “Vintage Trio” set from Da Vinci was the first artist-curated sets of paint I ever bought!

However, most of the time, I will use my own palettes of artist-grade paint from Daniel Smith, Schmincke, and Holbein. I also recently discovered Roman Szmal Aquarius watercolor and have been hooked on that since, as it is very affordable and rewets beautifully into gooeyness I can slap onto paper with abandon. I tend not to mix my paint on the palette and do tend to use a lot of paint, so my palettes are extensive and filled either with fresh paint from tubes or with highly rewettable pans like Schmincke and Roman Szmal.

I am attracted to a broad range of colors and pigments, but there is one thing that I never compromise, and that is Winsor & Newton PB 35 cerulean. I have a terrible addiction to cerulean and wish Winsor & Newton would make their PB35 available for sale in buckets! I go through it like a woman possessed, truly.

When working in ink, my favorite thing to use is Rohrer & Klingner Sketch Ink. It is suitable for use under watercolor as it dries very quickly and is nice and matte. The shade “Thea” is my favorite grey. I also use a variety of ink brush pens, but my most highly used ones are the Pentel pocket brush pen and the Akashiya thin line brush pen – the Pentel is great for covering larger areas and the thin line for very tiny details. I like to make very small drawings and the Akashiya thin line pens just feed that addiction.

As for brushes, I prefer the Escoda Perla range. They hold plenty of pigment and water while providing good control. I also use various synthetic flats, some of which are better suited for acrylic painting. I tend to use flats for quick studies and tests because they allow me to cover a lot of ground in a short time and make very definitive shapes with ease.

For daily work, I love to use watercolor sketchbooks. I live in a very small apartment with many things and not a lot of space, so I have no special storage space for work on loose sheets of paper. Any work in such a format ends up crumpled and stained. I also feel much less pressure when working in a sketchbook, so I stick to that when I’m working for myself.

With many fine options made of cellulose and even 100% cotton from Stillman & Birn (I love Delta and Zeta) and Strathmore (specifically, their new cotton travel journals and 400 Series watercolor sketchbooks), I don’t feel a need to stray too far from my preferred “book” format. The Stillman & Birn Zeta is a particular favorite because of the unorthodox effects it can help produce. However, I do also work on Fabriano Artistico and Arches cold press when doing work I do not intend to keep for myself.

Truly, I could go on about materials for ages and pages, but I’ll stop here. If you would like to discuss art “stuff,” I am always open for a good chat!

Closing Words

I will forever be indebted to the online art community and to Charlie’s generous gift of the space to share my passion with the world. I suppressed my natural urge to create for many years, but it always managed to manifest itself in my life in some form. I didn’t feel like I deserved to make art, and I didn’t feel I could create anything worthy of sharing.

However, starting an Instagram account during Inktober taught me that planning, creating, and sharing daily can be a worthy and awarding endeavor. With encouragements and opportunities to learn and create every day, like the Doodlewash prompts and community, it is easier than ever to find a place to belong. And to feel deserving of that place. Thank you.

Milena Guberinic Instagram

GUEST ARTIST: "Ends and Beginnings, Beginnings and Ends" by Milena Guberinic - #doodlewash #WorldWatercolorGroup #watercolor #watercolour Hello friends! My name is Milena Guberinic. I was born in Yugoslavia and moved to Canada during the Yugoslav Wars of the 90s.

[mommymadnez]

Ladies and gentlemen… I may have gone missing for awhile… However I am alive. There were times I did not think I was going to remain that way but I am still here. Was I losing my mind? Maybe just a little. Even had a couple surgeries. Which you would think would have allowed me the downtime to write but I think I was scared to put myself out there since I was going through a lot. In the midst of all that was going on my computer was becoming ancient, like 2009 ancient. Don’t get me wrong, my Mac is incredible but trying to type a small paragraph was taking an eternity. And sure, I could do it from my phone, a lot of my blogs start in my notes app. But sometimes I just like the feel of really typing, ya know? And it helps keep you sharp.

Plus I’m good at it. And I think sometimes my mind and my fingertips create an orchestra of thoughts, sounds, and rhythm all on their own. So now I sound crazy so let’s just say it’s therapeutic. So when my computer started getting wonky and my life got crazier, taking care of me and doing what I needed or wanted to do for myself kind of stopped mattering. So the blog, my photography, art, just about all my creative outlets took a back seat. BUT NOW…. My tools are working and I am thrilled with them. So now I have no excuses. (aside from working and raising 3 kids)

Usually my blogs are about my kids and my parenting struggles and breakthroughs but I think today its gonna be about me. We lose ourself in parenting, being a spouse, working, and all the other hats we are required to wear, I swear. I worry so much about putting all of everyone else’s needs before my own that I have truly lost sight of myself and who I am and what I NEED. But I think as moms we are all guilty of this from time to time. The thing that really has hit a nerve with me is that I was someone before I was a wife and mother. I know I may not have been the greatest version of myself but my needs came first back then. I wasn’t defined by who my children are and who I married. I was just me. Wild, spastic, living out in space some where, me. Unapologetically me.

Back in the day going out with my friends, we would pretty much have fun no matter where we went or what we did because we were all so wild and full of life and hope. I may have leaned a little on the annoying, loud and wild side. So it blows my mind to think back on all those teenage and early 20 days and then look now to my lack of socialization with the outside world and my anxiety riddled life as of late. Do not get me wrong, working from home is AHHH-mazing and I wouldn’t change it for the world. But whether I work with people in a virtual office or a physical one I do not believe it is the cure for bringing the old vibrant me back. So I definitely would not change that aspect of my life. Especially since I already struggle being a “people person.” Dealing with the public everyday in physical form would probably have me ripping my hair out. Plus you can’t really put people on hold in real life.

I always viewed my self as very plain Jane-ish. So a lot of what I felt I lacked physically I would try to make up for by being comedic relief… Or, someone who could take you for a ride in my Blue Beast making you forget all your problems by jammin to some gangster rap cruising through town… maybe we’d head a half hour outta town if we were feeling rebellious.  Probably just ended up at Walmart since we we minors. But hey, we got to go off the grid. We didn’t have cell phones to constantly keep us connected to everyone we know. Our parents couldn’t pull us up on the GPS. It felt free. Life felt full of joy and hope for the future. Even the bad days didn’t last very long because we were young. Our minds and hearts (and our skin) could bounce back a whole lot faster. I love my life as a mother do not get me wrong but every once in awhile I miss those carefree days. I miss only worrying about keeping myself alive.

I took care of me, numero uno. My future, my goals those were all things that mattered so much and were suppose to shape who I was to become as a grown adult. It was about what would make me find my happiness. My hopes and dreams of my young adult days did not pan out quite as expected. I had an idea of what my life would look like and I never imagined it would turn out the way it did. It is more than I ever could have imagined a life to be. I didn’t know unconditional love until I had children. And as painful as that love can be sometimes I would never give up experiencing this current life.

You learn to embrace those changes you didn’t see coming. That broken road that led you in a path you couldn’t in your wildest dreams have imagined. You accept those changes knowing that God had a purpose and a hand in all of this.

I see now I was not meant to be the Audrey Hepburn look alike I wanted to be. Guess I just don’t have the legs… I would never be as tall or thin or fancy! But that’s the life I thought I wanted. Ah! Breakfast at Tiffanys. I wanted a life in the big city. Fast, crazy times, studio apartments, cocktail parties, fancy dresses. And I wouldn’t have dared to own a yard. I can not mow worth a crap… So I got married! Ha!!! That’s just jokes, I married him because I can’t open pickle jars by myself. 2Liters can be tricky too! 😉

ANYWAYS! those of you who know me know I am by no means a successful artist living a fancy lifestyle. I moved back to my small home town. I’m a mom of three wild children who works at home and rarely gets dressed. My getting dressed requires my “goin out” yoga pants. They usually pair nicely with a sweater boots combo… But don’t let the nice looking sweater fool you. All my sweaters have some form of stains living on them somewhere. Probably throw up. So yeah definitely envisioned a different lifestyle.

So we embrace these new chapters in life. This chapter involves a whole lot more balance and a whole lot more people to feed, clothe and keep alive. When I truly think about it though, those old days of only keeping me alive were so long ago that the memories have really began to fade. My brain really only has room for so many memories at a time. I am getting more and more aware of my age and my sanity as my mind has slowly started slipping away.

I do see little pieces of the fun crazy me I use to be begin to creep out from time to time when I play with my kids. When I do things that are silly and out of character for mama they look at me strangely at first but then burst out laughing and just look at me again like, who is this woman? And what has she done with our mean mother? I have come to the realization that, this family, these people I live with, who know so much about me now, know absolutely nothing about who I was prior to their existence. I mean they know the 2019 me so well they like to mimic my laugh… and the way I brush my teeth and my hair… or the way I wrap a towel around my head! “I’m mama! Look at me!” That’s what they say when they are making fun of me. Which is usually a lot.

  I try to teach them a little about who I am through music I loved. I find time to play my favorites for them. In the car, or the tub, I don’t force it, I just let them listen and absorb.

So of course my heart melted the other day as we listened to Fleetwood Mac and my daughter asked me to send her the song! She is 100% my complete mini clone… SUPER SENSITIVE! She loves to sing, dance, use her imagination and draw. She is just all around happy and in love with life and the entire world around her. She reminds me a great deal of the old me. The one I seem to have lost. The other day I watched her as she slept and couldn’t stop thinking of how I want her to always stay carefree, creative and in love with life. I don’t want the weight of the world, the stress of families and relationships, others expectations, finances, or work to steal her joy. I always remind her of how beautiful, smart and funny she is and to never believe anyone if they tell her different. I truly believe she will be okay because she is fierce and I know that she will never let anyone or anything kill that spark and the joy within her.

So that brings me full circle to how do I find my lost joy? It sure wasn’t in that last jar of peanut butter I smashed. Yes of course, I find joy that I’m live, living and breathing right now. I also embrace the joy I find in my family and lifes other random little miracles. But is there a way to bring back a carefree spirit after years of isolation, anxiety, depression and stressors? Or the candy dishes of medications that did a number on me. They were suppose to either make me happy or make me want to die. Boy that seems like a great kind of drug/illness to take such a gamble on, right? Not like we are talking about pills for, uhm, the gout. Legit Mental health medications, prrrretttty much all of them have the possibility to cause suicidal ideations. Imagine those people who are already at their breaking point finally reaching out to a doctor for help; “Suicidal? Ah yes! Try this… It may make you feel better but your body might start to get tremors, you may have blurred vision and don’t forget the risk of erectile dysfunction. Oh, and you’ll also gain 50 pounds……… or it could make you want to kill yourself… even more… The kicker is, ya never know! You must give this drug 6-8 weeks for it to take affect. So here ya go! Have fun! May want to warn your family. Here take this pamphlet with 175 side effects to look out for” Oh boy… we will not journey down this road because that is more of a novel than a blog post.

With that being said, feel free to let me know if anyone wants to hear some crazy stories about my journey into the world of mental health in America. I got plenty. Boy I can tell ya we are missing the mark as a society when addressing mental health. There I go again, I must digress… This was not the point of the blog post. It’s actually suppose to be more like, “Hey hi! I’m going try to be back and write and take pictures on a regular basis, but, ya know… I got ADHD and tend to get easily distracted.”

So for those of you who actually read this super dope awesome long post, what do you do for yourself that brings you joy? Parenting and family aside, I want to know what you do for you?

I use to run and do yoga but I recently had a couple surgeries that didn’t go as greatly as anticipated so those stress releasing activities are currently on hold. I am going to try to get back into my writing and photography. Maybe the guitar some more. I have done some drawings recently and it felt really good. So I feel like I’m kinda headed in the right direction. I have hope that I am still buried deep inside of me in this shell of a former version of myself just waiting to come out and feel confident, joyful, and just be me again. I want my kids to know I was someone before I was “mama.” and I want to feel like that someone again. I need to learn more balance and how to put my oxygen mask on first because lately I’m struggling to breath and I think everyone else may be struggling because of it.

I put on a zip up hoodie the other day that was my absolute favorite in high school. It brought back some great memories, and side note, made me pretty freakin excited it fit me just as good, if not better, than it did before. It makes me pretty nervous putting all this out there after being MIA for so long. I feel like it sounds like a pity party like “woah is me… I don’t act all fun and crazy and hyper anymore and I have no energy and I have been known to… on occasion… yell… I feel old and crotchety, blah get off my lawn!”

At the same time I needed to start somewhere and why just dip my toe in? Midaswell just type out what is on my mind. Hopefully this helps anyone else out there struggling with some of the same thoughts I’ve had lately. I want my kids to realize I’m more than just good at the way I can cut a peanut butter sandwich. Theres more behind the weary worn down personality you have known the past few years. Now let’s go find her!

  Hello World It’s me, again… Ladies and gentlemen... I may have gone missing for awhile... However I am alive. There were times I did not think I was going to remain that way but I am still here.

[elegantactingchops]

On becoming an actor

“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back.  Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans:  that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too.  All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would come his way.  Whatever you can do or dream you can do, begin it.  Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.  Begin it now.”

W H Murray - mountain climber

On becoming an actor

This is a blog for people interested in pursuing a life in the artistic discipline of ACTING.  I love acting and actors.  I have been an actor for close to four decades, and have taught acting for more than thirty years in studios, conservatories, and universities in the United States and Europe.  I have also maintained a thriving career in both acting and directing, performing professionally in well over one hundred roles as an actor and directing more than fifty plays.  I am captivated by the process of engaging with the conditions and circumstances of an imagined event and turning what is suggested into a living reality. To spark an imagined story to life is hard to do. To actually make a living at it is even more difficult.  I have the greatest respect and admiration for any person who endeavors to become an actor…

…and there are a lot of them.

Taking the risk

People come to New York City every day with the thought of becoming an actor.  This is the place to do that.  You’ll get arguments from actors in Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, London, and many places in between, but no one will argue with the fact that if you want to learn to be an actor, you have to go where the actors are.  

The brilliant playwright, Tony Kushner (Angels in America) spoke at Texas Tech University several years ago when I was teaching there.  A woman stood up from the audience of six hundred and asked Kushner, “I have acted in some plays and I want to pursue a career in acting. I was wondering if you had any advice for an actress in Lubbock, Texas?”  Kushner paused, considered, then gently responded, “Leave.  You have to go where there are actors, where there are people creating on a professional level.  Go where there is art.”

So the hopeful come, from everywhere across the globe, to study acting in the Big Apple.  So great is the draw of New York, that my classes are filled with students of all races, religious backgrounds, nationalities, ages, and sexual identifications.  And I must constantly remind myself, that few of them have any idea what acting is, what an actor does, what having technique means, where to get that technique, what to do with it once you have it, and of course, the ultimate, how do you make a living at it.

I am continually surprised by how many people entertain the notion that they might like to be an actor.  I have been at dinner parties, sitting at the table with engineers, brain surgeons, pastry chefs, physical therapists, people from every walk of life, and as soon as they find out I teach acting and have acted in the professional realm, they only want to talk about that.  Well, not my experience, exactly, but about their own almost-brush with performing.

Everyone who becomes an actor has that aha moment when they are stopped in their tracks from whatever life path they are on and something shifts in them.  They perhaps see a performance on screen or stage, and think, “I want to do that.”  Or perhaps they are enthralled by meeting an actor, and think, “I want to be like that.”  Or they see actors on tv and they look great and they make lots of money, and everyone treats them like they are special and they think, “I want some of that, too.”  The next question for all those people is, “How?”

Some express how they briefly entertained becoming an actor after their performance in the spring production in high school, when everyone said they were talented. Some confess that becoming an actor has been their burning desire since childhood and they have never forgiven themselves or their grounding real life responsibilities to their parents, or even kids, for somehow overriding their dreams and steering them to become a lawyer, doctor, business person, house wife, etc.  They always want me to know they still secretly harbor this deep desire and perhaps, I might be able to advise them, or at least recognize, or better yet, help them realize their inner talent.

I have had old friends seek me out, years after school, wanting my opinion as to whether they should chuck it all and go into acting, because when they took this one class, or stumbled into a moment on stage, it was the only time they felt truly alive!  Those moments are wonderful and reveal to us, almost by accident, the potential we all have to experience a life in full.  We want to be careful, though, that we don’t make a huge life-changing decision based on a misunderstanding of what the life of an actor is.   We all feel we have a creative artist deep inside and if we could only let that out, we would be fulfilled.  There is a romantic notion that life of an actor is potentially so much more fulfilling than the mundane existence of our everydayness.  Truth be told, this perception of the actors’ life (mostly based on the handful of ultra successful actors profiled in the media) is a tiny surface illusion, the tip of an iceberg, where just underneath lies a reality of struggle, rejection, and sacrifice.  There is only one good reason to be an actor, and that is because you have something to express and cannot live without expressing it.  

One truth I have found is that those people who continue to pursue acting do so because they have something to say or better, something to express.  They don’t feel they have a choice.  They have probably never truly expressed themselves.  They have never heard their true voice.  Over the years I have on occasion become despondent, questioned the path I have chosen, and thought to quit acting, (it was too hard, I couldn’t stand the constant rejection, etc.), but always felt it calling me back.  I found it a burden NOT to act. I am lost without acting.  I need to do it.  When I am deeply focused in the acting process and then in performance, I have a strong sense of living deeply, the optimal human experience.  I am happy.  I experience joy.

All the above is to say this:  choosing to become an actor takes courage, it also takes a good deal of thought.  And any reason to start that process is as good an another.  What is truly necessary is commitment.  Unless you are absolutely committed to the process of becoming an actor, the years of study it takes to earn your chops, the money you will spend to pay for those lessons, the everyday auditioning (if you are lucky enough to get to audition), maintaining a second job to pay your rent, doing years of acting for free so you can become good, and the rejection every actor faces on a daily basis, you should probably think about another line of work.

[ashleighborders-blog]

Tips To become Delighted

Like lots of other people, I've lived a lot of my live along with an eating disorder. And talking genetic makeups, there is actually a great odds that considering that our human brains are actually wired in different ways and also create different levels from chemicals that influence our thought processes, several of our company are actually going to possess a more difficult time making a delighted relationship". They let you discover truth functions of love as well as creates your love life extra delighted and also pleasant. Utilize all of them as self incentive workout so as to obtain the important personal motivation skill-sets, which are going to aid you to become a far more satisfied as well as healthy and balanced individual. Ladies frequently review themselves to mistress, when you looking at mistress when she is actually around, you are going to create her feel as though she's not good enough. Lots of researches present that becoming an optimist will certainly create you a much less susceptible to clinical depression or anxiety, be actually more successful, and a great deal far healthier each physically and psychologically. You make me pleased whether you understand that or otherwise I am actually so delighted recognizing you are actually the one that ill really love for the rest from my days. Select an exquisite food selection coming from the starters by means of the deserts that might make the celebrant, as well as the guests, feel unique throughout the food. Yet there are actually traits you can do to create things manage additional properly and also to stay away from shooting yourself in the foot. The pay appreciation for the countless reparations that mothers produce their family members, today is actually observed in the entire UK and the globe. Cupcakes and also pies are very easy to earn as well as most importantly enable kids to design artistic decorations, yet today our team'll concentrate on biscuits, specifically the kind that don't demand baking: no bake biscuits. The even more our experts can be right" and delighted with everyone we encounter, the fuller and also more memorable our lifestyles are going to be actually. Therefore, yes, Commenter, I may prefer to enjoy or believe instants of joy and happiness and also interior unity, despite all that is actually taking place. I experience that's certainly not simply my obligation yet my obligation to help hold a more nurturing vibration on this world-- especially now. A lady that is willing to practice is one thing that every male hope for, so if you would like to create him truly satisfied, offer him an opportunity make an effort one thing brand new. You will locate some center reasons for this, as well as understanding these reasons will help you make the proper adjustments. This is actually something particular to you, as well as along with some help you may find out how to partner with your newly found expertise and create your life livable ... and also actual lifestyle ... one that really isn't overridden along with your fixation since you believe that this is actually more vital compared to your real self ... considering that this is actually not. Additionally if you pay attention to the things in your lifestyle that you are happy for certainly not just perform you believe better however you likewise start to draw in even more things that make you satisfied. I often locate on my own drawing up a page of pleased factors when I'm in a happy and also excellent location and also I'm troubled this is actually visiting pertain to a conclusion very soon. When you want to obtain your ex girl back as soon as possible, you usually bring in the same mistake as most guys perform, and also you also know that this is not going to work. An uplifting concept which will additionally prepare the theme for the party would certainly be the backdrop. Share a few of these hilarious friendship quotes with the good friends who create your lifestyle a brighter and also your days a delight. Current economical difficulties have pushed everyone to earn some tough options when that pertains to the house budget. Obtain the learning you should receive the job you prefer or even just go forward as well as apply for it. Carry out whatever you have to carry out to create that adjustment and more than happy. Here is more info regarding yellow pages residential listings uk [realizaro-max.info] have a look at our own site. Thus if you thought being actually aged will make you awful, felt confident that this is actually very likely you'll develop an even more favorable expectation in comparison to you possibly possess currently. Think about these right here main qualities from the indicator as well as what it mentions regarding keeping them pleased in relationships. Certainly, hawks or even other predacious birds may be attracted to events of song birds. Nonetheless, this deserves striving for thus take some time to pinpoint your passions (the work-type points you really enjoy), do your research, create programs and carry out whatever you have to do making the transition to your private very work". The bad grammar and also punctuation in this particular document suffices to earn me doubt the accuracy of the writer's insurance claims. Without his guidance, our experts would certainly still be residing in our dreamland of joy and assuming whatever and also everyone out there will certainly create our team delighted. Attempt other factors when you possess your foreplay and also make that exciting every single time you make love. If you're satisfied, men is going to be with you in your setting and not change a factor. The only trait that ought to get on your mind is actually the assurance that you will certainly be actually devoting several of the greatest moments from your life below, which will make you go back for more. Not receiving exactly what they really want, not getting all those points that they think will definitely make all of them pleased, they become bitter, resentful, indicate and also they are actually trying to find means to predict each of those unfavorable sensations on those around all of them. Andrew was actually constantly therefore pleased that this thought particularly disconcerting when he entered into some of his dark state of minds. As well as if you intend to make your man happy in the real feeling, then you will certainly need to make sure improvements in you. Care needs to be had, however, when attempting to fight an affliction, as inexperienced wheels may in fact compound that and create that worse. People toss colours on each other as well as want Delighted Holi." Folks additionally help make special recipes at their house and consume with their good friends.

[financevisionary]

6 pieces of misguided financial advice that need to die

Recently, one of my buddies was curtain shopping when she got some pretty crazy insight from a friendly store employee.

'You need to expect to spend around 5 % of your residence's worth on curtains and drapes,' the saleswoman described as she sauntered around the sales floor.

Of training course, my pal stopped at the idea. Not only is spending that much cash on drapes absolutely unreasonable, yet it is likewise extremely unrealistic.

Where we live, you can get a truly nice four-bedroom home for $200,000, toss a few Wal-Mart drapes up, and also stop. For paradise's sake, nobody should invest that significantly money on curtains.

I know I absolutely really did not. Customarily, I missed the memo on what someone else thinks I must invest on this or that. When we got our house, my whole drape spending consisted of the cost of a few frames from J.C. Penney. What, maybe $50?

Well guess what, my home looks equally as great as it would certainly if I had actually bought customized Louis Vuitton drapes with gold leaf needlework. (Or whatever kind of curtains set you back $10,000-- I'm not really sure.)

Regardless, the entire scenario with my buddy obtained me thinking concerning all crazy economic guidance I have actually listened to throughout the years. Due to the fact that, allow's encounter it, bad monetary recommendations is all over. And while some is just obsoleted, various other tidbits of wisdom are marginal criminal to disseminate.

Here are some monetary pearls of wisdom that people must truly quit discussing:

1. Anticipate to spend 2 months' wage on an engagement ring.

Nothing grinds my gears greater than the idea that guys or ladies should fork over 2 month's wage for an engagement ring. Think about it. A man drawing in $60,000 need to expect to invest $10,000 on a ring, while a male (or lady) making $90,000 should invest $15,000. Even an individual managing on $30,000 would certainly have to drop $5,000 to meet this standard.

That's the greatest lots of crazy talk I've ever before listened to, as well as it makes good sense when you learn where this guidance stemmed from. Fashion jewelry titan DeBeers crafted that practical policy in the 1980s with the campaign slogan, 'Exactly how can you make two months' income last forever?' Prior to that, the cost wide range DeBeers suggested was more like one month's earnings.

The profits: When you allow a business's advertising and marketing campaign decide just how significantly you ought to invest on their product, expectations will certainly be high. Invest as much as you want on an engagement ring, and also not a penny much more. For many of us, 2 month's salary makes little to no sense.

2. Get as much house as you can afford.

For those who noted and took note, the real estate accident of 2008 functions as a pointer of what occurs when prices spiral unmanageable. However, people often fail to remember promptly. And even worse, they get back to believing the precise same nonsense that got them into trouble in the initial place.

When we were property shopping last year, we heard a lot of the recommendations that confirmed awful back just before the housing bubble popped. 'You guys need to actually purchase a lot even more residence than this,' one Real estate professional told us. 'Buy huge as well as you could quickly double the value of our home over the next decade.'

Another real estate agent echoed a similar position. 'Interest prices are reduced,' she stated. 'Now is the moment to acquire as long as you can.'

But, just how much could we acquire? According to a common home mortgage calculator, we could spend about 300 % of exactly what we would certainly planned. During that time, I didn't care just what a calculator told me, nor did I care what the financial institution would certainly offer me. I recognized exactly what I could possibly pay for, and I was fairly content with my decision.

The profits: Just you know what you could afford. Don't listen to the bank. And for heaven's purpose, don't hear real estate agents-- their incomes could increase or fall depending on exactly how significantly you spend.

3. Credit cards are the devil.

Although this certain insight is obsoleted, monetary master Dave Ramsey remains to lead the cost versus the usage of credit report as a way of payment. Back in 2009, he didn't dice words when he told his fans to prevent credit history in any way costs.

"There is no favorable side to credit rating card use. You will spend more if you utilize credit report cards,' he created on his internet site. 'Even by paying the expenses promptly, you are not defeating the hvac system! A lot of family members don't pay on time.'

His viewpoint could not have transformed because then, however the globe certain has. Now you can barely obtain by without a minimum of having a charge card for unexpected emergencies. These days, you need credit history to rent a resort room or a rental vehicle. (You could make use of debit, but they will put a grip versus the real funds in your account if you do.)

Meanwhile, credit history cards supply particular defenses that you i simply can not acquire if you make use of cash-- or even debit. Traveling insurance coverage, travel insurance coverage, as well as fraud protection are a few of the biggest rewards, but there are lots of others.

The truth is, bank card are not the evil one-- the way we utilize them is the problem. Credit history cards don't acquire you in the red, you do. Find out to make use of credit intelligently, or don't use it at all. Just do not blame a piece of plastic for your problems.

4. Save 10 % for retirement as well as you'll be fine.

For as long as I can bear in mind, I have actually heard that I need to save 10 % of my incomes for that remote celebration in the future known just as 'retired life.'

But over the training course of my life time, the profession landscape has altered significantly. Where workers once worked at the exact same business for 20 or Three Decade, people are now considerably a lot more most likely to change tasks whenever the wind strikes. And also where the majority of people worked for another person their entire lives, much more are now independent or component of the growing freelance economy.

Is 10 % still enough? Maybe, however those of us that intend to retire early sure do not think so.

Let's evaluation of the selections. A family making an average of $60,000 which socks away simply 10 % of that revenue for 30 years would have only $734,075 for retired life if they made an average of 8 % on their investments. If they could possibly manage to put away 20 % instead, they would have near $1.5 million.

The concept of saving just 10 % for retirement died right in addition to the suggestion that you might invest your entire life helping one law firm. If you intend to retire very early -- if you really want to have options-- you should conserve much more than that. And you ought to start now.

5. Bring an equilibrium to boost your credit report score.

This one actually irritates me, and it's merely not since it's patently untrue, it also costs individuals money. Evidently, word on the street is that bring an equilibrium (as well as paying interest) could in fact enhance your credit history score.

Here's the truth: 5 varying factors are taken into consideration when coming up with each individual's credit history score. As MyFico.com reports, 30 % of your rating is based on amounts owed, 35 % on payment past history, 15 % on the ordinary length of your credit report history, 10 % on the amount of brand-new credit you have, and also an additional 10 % on your credit history mix.

The 'totals owed' component is of utmost importance in this disagreement. Basically, the amount of cash you owe on your accounts compared with your overall account restriction is your 'balance-to-limit' proportion, additionally understood as your 'utilization.' Below's exactly how Experian details it:

'Your balance-to-limit proportion, also called your use price, is determined by separating the total amount of the equilibriums on your credit rating cards by the total amount of the credit limitations on your charge card. A high balance-to-limit proportion notifies creditors that you may be experiencing economic trouble or using credit to live beyond your means. A high use rate is a strong indicator of credit rating risk, 2nd just to your repayment history. According to VantageScore, your balances need to not surpass 30 % of your credit line. The reduced your use rate, the much better. The very best approach is to pay your equilibriums in complete every month.'

In other words, owing cash misbehaves for your use, and therefore, bad for your credit report. So rather than bring a balance with the false hope that it's a great thing, pay your credit rating card in complete and also relish in the joy of coming to be debt-free.

6. College is constantly an excellent investment.

Here's the largest whopper of them all-- the lie of all lies-- the one economic mistake that can change your life for years to come.

It's true that university is the ideal assets that many individuals have ever made or will ever make. However is it a great financial investment for everyone? I think not.

While a college degree might be a demand for some occupations, it isn't called for in any way for others. Nurses, physicians, attorneys, as well as educators need that oral plaque buildup on the wall surface and also the suitable accreditations, yet do builders, artists, as well as tech workers? The answer: Not always.

The increasing expenses of a college level also play a component in this formula. When university costs rise faster than the salaries of degree-holders, the return-on-investment, or ROI, goes down like a lead brick.

According to one of the most current figures from University Board, the typical expense of a four-year level from a four-year in-state institution has actually reached nearly $40,000 for the 2014-15 academic year. At the same time, the price of the very same level at a personal college rose to virtually $125,000. And also remember, that's just the cost for tuition as well as charges, it doesn't include room as well as board, real estate, as well as all of the various other expenses that maintain college unreachable for so many.

And maybe the greatest red flag is this: Practically fifty percent of newbie university pupils do not complete making their degree. That implies many pupils leave institution with a lot of pupil funding financial obligation-- and very little else to reveal for it.

The truth: College isn't for every person, neither ought to it be. Believe long and also hard just before you press your kids into something that will certainly cost them a lot, yet potentially return so little. Specific jobs might call for that four-year degree, however others need simply an associate's degree, a few accreditations, or some applicable encounter. It depends on you to know the difference.

Learning to spot bad advice from a mile away

When you're young as well as still figuring things out, it's simple to hear monetary suggestions such as this as well as believe that's i simply the method things are. When you have actually been around for a while, you start to recognize that bad financial insight is anywhere-- and also it's up to you to prevent it.

So rather of relying on what others claim, learn to believe things through on your own. It could be smart to get in touch with a financial specialist in specific situations, but a lot of the time, you most likely already recognize the solution. If a $20,000 engagement ring seems like the craziest point you have actually ever listened to, it's most likely due to the fact that it is. That cares just what DeBeers needs to claim regarding it?

The bottom line is this: Only you understand just what you can pay for. Just you know if specific advice makes good sense for your scenario. And also for heaven's sake, only you recognize just how much you should invest on curtains. As well as at the end of the day, just your point of view matters.

So do yourself and also everybody else a support-- disregard bad financial insight, or at the very least stop repeating it. Some bad financial suggestions needs to die-- once and for all.